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Officials with the N.C. Division of Water Resources continue to urge the public to avoid contact with green or blue water in the Chowan River due to an ongoing algal bloom that has lingered in the area since June 20.

The N.C. Division of Water Resources is seeking public feedback on a proposed reclassification of Enka Lake, a portion of Bill Moore Creek in Buncombe County (French Broad River Basin). The Biltmore Lake Association has requested that Enka Lake be reclassified from Class C to Class B.

The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality was notified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of their denial of the Lower Cape Fear River (LCFR) supplemental classification as swamp waters. The original effort to push to reclassify the river was driven by the previous administration, approved by the EMC in 2015, and eventually submitted to the EPA earlier this year.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality (DAQ) is taking comprehensive action on the use of methyl bromide in log fumigation operations. A review of current and proposed facilities, including the Malec Brothers Transport operation in Columbus County, made clear the need for specific state regulations for methyl bromide use.

The N.C. Division of Water Resources is seeking public feedback on a draft wastewater permit and draft special order by consent for Duke Energy’s Asheville Steam Electric Plant. The draft wastewater permit is a modification to the plant’s existing permit, while the special order by consent has been requested by Duke Energy to address issues related to seeps from coal ash basins at the Buncombe County facility.

The N.C. Division of Air Quality (DAQ) will celebrate the innovative ideas of state seventh graders Saturday at the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer on Saturday. As part of the North Carolina 2018 AQ-IQ Contest, the students created projects highlighting air quality issues and their ideas for solving them.

The State Water Infrastructure Authority will meet in Raleigh July 18 at the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center, 4021 Carya Drive. The meeting is open to the public, with an opportunity for informal public comments.